India batter and Delhi Capitals Women vice-captain Jemimah Rodrigues expressed admiration of India and Mumbai Indians Women captain Harmanpreet Kaur for providing the best-possible start to the first match of the inaugural season of Women’s Premier League.
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Kaur, 33, commenced her WPL career with a potentially match-winning half-century which played a primary role in powering Mumbai to 207/5 in 20 overs after being invited in to bat by Gujarat Giants Women captain Beth Mooney.
Coming in to bat at No. 4 in the ninth over after an assuring start, Kaur ran singles off her first three deliveries before hitting Gujarat vice-captain Sneh Rana for consecutive boundaries right after the halfway mark.
In what was just the start of an aggressive knock at the Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Kaur hit a couple of fours off Giants spinner Georgia Wareham to further get going in the next over.
Annabel Sutherland’s following over was no different as the right-handed batter hit consecutive fours for the third over in a row. In no mood to spare any bowler, Kaur’s next target was pacer Monica Patel. In the 15th over, Kaur upped the ante by hitting four back-to-back fours off Patel only to follow it with three successive boundaries in Ashleigh Gardner’s next over.
Jemimah Rodrigues rejoices in ‘brilliant’ Harmanpreet Kaur innings in WPL opener
Kaur, who hit seven fours in a row to not only complete a half-century but also set a benchmark for the others to follow, was dismissed by Rana in the 17th over. The right-handed batter returned to the pavilion after scoring 65 (30) comprising as many as 14 fours. Assisted by fortune on a couple of occasions, Kaur managed to made it all count tonight.
Set to play her first match of the season against Royal Challengers Bangalore Women at the Brabourne Stadium tomorrow, Rodrigues rejoiced in Kaur’s innings in one of the many tweets she uploaded before and during a historic contest.
Readers must note that both Rodrigues and Kaur were part of a game-changing partnership during the first semi-final of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 against Australia before a bizarre Kaur dismissal turned the tables at the SuperSport Park.
